I have a couple of Mallard ducks, they have never left my backyard since we have a big pond. This year she has laid so many eggs, but finally she has made a good nest and she laid 13 eggs, She has been sitting on them for 2 weeks now, but last night 3 were eaten. Normally they will abandon the nest, but she still sitting on her nest, a little frighten.

Ad

Should I move the eggs to to a chicken coop? Will she still sit on them after I move them? What is the best I can do, so no more eggs get eaten?

We live in Michigan and have foxes, raccoons, hawks, snapping turtles, and more :(Thank you.

Answers

Do you have a wildlife rescue or aviary in your area? I would call them and see if they can help. The wildlife rescue in my town is really good and offers solutions to challenges like this. If you can't find it through Google, call your local town officials or even the police NON EMERGENCY number and see if they can get you hooked up with the right place. Good luck to you and the eggs!

Answers

You need to talk to someone who has experience with raising ducks. Is there a local farmer you could consult, or a government agricultural office that might help? Sometimes there are experts at colleges that have vet medicine programs or agricultural programs.

We had a duck lay one egg in our bark at work 2 days ago. The egg was completely exposed to the elements. We hadn't seen the mother duck until today when she came looking for her egg. We assumed she abandoned the egg, so we picked it up with rubber gloves, placed it in a warm towel and laid it in the sun for warmth.

Ad

The mother duck returned today, however we have her egg inside. If we place the egg back, will the mother return?

Not really sure if she'll take the egg back but I did hatch one with a heating pad before. The mother was killed by the neighbors dog & it was the only one left. You will have to roll the egg just as the mother would.

You may return this egg to where you found it, but it may already be dead, depending on what temperature it reached while you had it in the towel or sitting in the sun. A certain level of heat initiates development of the duckling, and then to remove the heat will stop development so that the duckling will die. Incubation is not meant to begin until all the eggs have been laid and the mother is ready to incubate them for the full duration of time... it should not be started and stopped, or attempted with haphazard temperatures.

Ad

With ducks, the eggs are left exposed to the elements until all eggs are laid, and this does not harm them. All birds must lay their full clutch of eggs over several days, leaving the eggs exposed until they have completed their clutch and will then begin incubating. Next time, please leave the eggs where they are laid. Without an incubator set to the proper temperature and humidity, you are doing more harm than good, despite well-meaning intentions.

A duck has been nesting in the garden, but was scared off the other day. 2 eggs were broken and she left the nest. She has not returned all day and it is wet and cold. They are calling for more rain and cold weather including possible snow tomorrow. Seeing as it was nearing evening we decided to bring the eggs and nest inside so they would not get too cold. There is no male and she was hurt. Is there any chance she will return and if she does can we put the nest back for her?

Answers

I doubt she will come back. Just from my own experience of keeping ducks they are very good at laying and abandoning eggs wherever they feel like. They even lay them in the pond.

If the chicks have already started to develop then it is probably too late anyway. Your best bet is to find someone with an incubator to see if they develop and hatch, but you then need to be prepared to look after them if they do. They will need "chick crumbs" to eat and are a lot of fun to start with as they will follow you everywhere on little pitter pattering feet and they snuggle up with you on your shoulder, but will get big, very messy and not so friendly as they grow up.

We have a duck's nest in a bucket on our balcony that is one story up from the ground. Should we move the bucket to ground level and when should we do that? If we move the bucket before they hatch will the mother duck find them?

Answers

Don't move it. She may not come back to it if you move it because she will then consider you to be a predator. They only put it where they feel safe. Most likely she spotted a predator on the ground, so that is why she went up a story (dog, cat, snake, even mice or rats will eat their egg)

It is snowing in Minnesota and the temp has gotten down to the 40s most nights for the last week. On Easter we noticed a duck in the bushes by our front yard and 3 eggs under some leaves. We have not seen the duck since then, but today she tried to move her eggs and one is in the grass on the side of the driveway and the other 2 are still in the bushes. What should we do?

I had several duck eggs laid about two weeks ago, 12 in total. I noticed two days ago one egg was out of the nest about two feet away. Today 4 more seemingly were kicked out again all about two feet away. One of the eggs the very top was broken off and looked to have some egg yolk left but not much else. I see ducks over there every day. Are these eggs not good or what could have happened?

My duck laid 2 eggs on my neighbor's pouch. It has now laid one egg on my balcony. Which I think was because she didn't have a way off of the balcony where I her wanted to lay her egg. What do I do? Which should I move to add to the other?

I have 3 duck nests in my yard, each nest has 20 plus eggs. The momma ducks are caring for them and at this point and are not leaving their nests. They are obviously not sitting on all of the eggs because their bodies are not that big. Is it possible all of the eggs will not hatch? Also, one nest is on a hill, a few have rolled down about 1-2 feet (see pic), should I put them back? I do not live on a farm either hahaha. They are so beautiful tho so I am watching them closely. She is on the nest under the branch. She is pretty much used to me because I am around all the time.

Answers

How neat. Please take pictures.As for the rest, all the eggs will not hatch. Ducks are frequently careless with their eggs. Nature makes up for that by providing enough living chicks for the duck to care for without becoming completely overwhelmed. The stray eggs frequently make meals for racoons and black snakes, so these are also part of nature's plan. Resist the urge to rescue stray eggs, however, if they aren't disposed of naturally within a few days dispose of them so they don't rot. Your ducks should be happy and healthy with cute babies. They require little help from humans.

Two ducks have been hanging around my swimming pool. Last night the female laid an egg in the pool. I fished the egg out of the pool without touching it and put it in a grass insert for a flower basket. Will the ducks care for it or should I just throw the egg away?

By Brian from Setauket, NY

Answers

If the mother doesn't come back, put the egg in your hand and carefully take it inside. Put it in a box and keep the box open then put the egg in the box with a soft pillow and a big flashlight to keep it warm. You never want to throw it away.

Answers:

Moving Duck Eggs

If these are wild ducks, most likely they will not survive a move. If they are pet ducks, pick up the entire thing and move it with the momma present so she will see where it is going to. Move it a little at a time.Even then she may not like the new location and quit sitting. Sometimes we can move our ducks and chickens within the coop area, other times they say forget it and quit sitting. Good luck. (04/23/2009)

Moving Duck Eggs

A few years back there was a wild duck nest with eggs under a bush right in the middle of our grocery store parking lot. The DNR was notified and the nest was not moved until all the eggs were hatched. I couldn't believe that for weeks no one touched those eggs. After they all hatched, the DNR moved them to a safe place. I suggest you call the DNR or local wild animal refuge organization. (04/24/2009)